She shook her head as she walked away, heading to the table with the kids. Laura immediately regretted the harsh tone she'd used, but the point remained valid. Laura was responsible for her siblings now. She'd woken up one morning and suddenly had a five and seven-year-old to care for. She couldn't just randomly go out to dinner with some guy and leave them alone with a stranger. Her parents would hate that.
Laura took a breath to clear her head. Elena just had no idea how stressful this all was. She took another deep breath and headed to the table. The food would be here soon, and she was hungry.
Elena was taking turns with Dallas playing Tic-Tac-Toe. It looked like she was even letting Dallas win when Laura arrived. She slid into her usual spot at the table.
“So, Ivy and Dallas, would you two be okay with your sister going out on a date?” Elena asked, not looking up from the Tic-Tac-Toe board.
“Hey!” Laura tried to kick her under the table but missed. Instead of kicking Elena, Laura slammed her toes against the hard wooden beam of the chair. It hurt more than she had expected.
Dallas looked up and thought for a second. “Sure. She needs to get laid,” he said with a shrug.
Laura's eyes nearly popped out of her head. “Excuse me? What did you just say?”
Dallas glanced at the two women, suddenly nervous. “That you need to get laid. That's what they say on that TV show you watch.” He frowned. “Is getting laid bad? It sounded like a good thing.”
Elena looked like she was going to choke on her own laughter. Laura was just glad Elena was holding it in, or she would have had to kick her again.
“He's not wrong,” Elena managed to get out.
Laura glared at her. Her toes still hurt, or she would have attempted another kick.
“No, Dallas,” Laura said, still shooting daggers at Elena. “It's a grown-up thing. We shouldn't repeat that phrase, okay?”
“Okay, Laura.” He shrugged and then went back to studying the board to determine the best place to put his X to beat Elena's O's.
“What about you, Ivy?” Elena asked, finally in control again.
Laura gave her a dirty look. She'd hoped that Elena had gotten distracted by Dallas and forgotten what she was asking, but that didn't happen.
“Sure,” Ivy replied, looking up from her drawing. “Will you come watch us, Elena? Then we can have pizza.”
“I'm busy this week,” Elena told her. “It would be someone else watching you. Is that okay?”
Laura held her breath. She expected Ivy to say no. That it had to be Elena who watched them and no one else. Then, she would be justified. The kids needed her.
Ivy thought for a long moment, then shrugged. “We'd still get pizza, right?”
“I'm so glad you love me for my pizza skills,” Elena teased.
“What? I like pizza,” Ivy said, completely serious.
“I know you do,” Elena soothed. “But, would you be okay with someone else watching you? As long as they're nice?”
“Yeah, we'd be okay,” Ivy replied. She thought for a moment then turned to Laura with a huge grin on her face. “Would I be in charge? Would Dallas have to do everything I say?”
Elena gave her a smug smile. “See?”
Laura crossed her arms and glared at Elena. That wasn't the answer she was expecting. “We're not discussing this now.”
“They're fine, Laura,” Elena said, pushing her luck. “Go on the date. And don't feel guilty about it, okay?”
“That was low.” Laura kept her arms crossed.
“Yes, it was,” Elena acknowledged. She smirked. “And I have absolutely no guilt over it either. You should go on the date.”
“Who wants to take you on a date?” Ivy asked, looking up again. “And why you?”
“Hey, I am very date-able,” Laura informed her. Ivy just gave her a skeptical look. “I really do have a date.”